A world apart

The flight back from Gatwick was dire . EasyJet was an hour and a half late in boarding, the terminal was bursting at the seams and the crew were (unsuccessfully)  doing their  best to hide how tired and irritated they were. The tug that was supposed to tow us away from the gate got 'lost' so that added yet another hour to the journey.

We finally get into Leuchars at four and stop off for a leg stretching walk down by the sea. On the Old Course a foursome reach the eighteenth hole as the afternoon sun is  casting long shadows on the fairways. One Californian gentleman is overcome by emotion. He sits on the steps of the club house and dabs his eyes with his handkerchief. ' I never thought I'd get to do this ' he says to his slightly bemused and possibly embarrassed companions. All of them share the opinion that their round of golf was 'awesome'.

Back at The last wee house before Denmark  the gulls are startled by our return . They take off with a great squawking. We stand and watch five or six hundred of them circle around the house before returning to the spot they took off from.

This morning the clocks have changed and there's a stunning sunrise ready to greet the local dog walkers. A young Hooper Swan is swimming alone on the shore. It seems to have got separated from its parents and is uncertain what to do. The farmers wife says she saw three swans down by the heron pond. We all hope they get reunited soon. The farmers wife returns with a plastic crate full of freshly harvested broccoli. Sometime in the coming week the cabbage harvest will start and then, before Christmas, they'll get to work on the cauliflowers.

The calm of the village is a world apart from the bright lights and energy of London.

Talking to animals ? :https://www.reuters.com/technology/artificial-intelligence/ai-decodes-oinks-grunts-keep-pigs-happy-2024-10-24/

Scotlands national airline. Tunnocks are a key element on the inflight service  :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhNbbsgHNV8